ISLAMABAD: The police have arrested 1,239 people and registered 1,120 cases under the Control of Narcotics Substances Actsince December2018 but have not taken any action against drug trafficking or dealers.

According to details collected by the police, the Islamabad police — including police stations and the police’s investigation wing — arrested 1,239 people, registered 1,120 cases and recovered approximately Rs8 million worth of narcotics since December, police officers said.

Most of the people arrested were drug peddlers, and some were drug addicts, officials said. Most arrests were made during patrols and checking on roads, and some arrests took place during search operations in various areas.

The police failed to raid or unearth any narcotics densin the capital, they added, despite being well aware of their localities.

Officers said that according to standard operating procedure (SOP), the police are not to arrest addicts. However, dozens of drug users have been held just to augment the number of arrests, they claimed.

In most cases, police also did not complete legal procedure, they said. In some cases, the people from whom peddlers or addicts had bought narcotics were booked, but in many cases no action was taken against them.

Narcotics dens in various villages in the capital have also continued to operate, officers said. Search operations in these areas failed to root them out, because most of the people involved managed to flee and disposed of any drugs before the police arrived.

In addition, narcotics are still being brought to these villagers from other parts of the country. Officers said police have arrested some smugglers and recovered narcotics, but this has not had a meaningful effect.

Most of the people arrested since December have been released on bail, including individuals arrested under section 9C, a provision punishable by life in prison or death.

Officers said that the police so far have only increased the number of arrests and recoveries of drugs. A drug peddler has also been arrested multiple times and have multiple cases registered against them, but after getting bail they start peddling narcotics again.

Inspector Genral of Police Mohammad Aamir Zulfikar Khan, Deputy Inspector General of Police (Operation) Waqaruddin Syed, and police spokesperson Assistant Inspector General of Police (Operation) Sardar Ghias Gull Khan could not be reached for comment despite repeated attempts.

Published in Dawn, July 16th, 2019